Transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1) and vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) receptors expressed predominantly in sensory nerves are activated by inflammatory stimuli and mediate inflammation and pain. Although they have been shown in the human endometrium, their regulation and function are unknown. Therefore, we investigated their estrogen- and progesterone-dependent alterations in the rat endometrium in comparison with the estrogen-regulated inflammatory cytokine macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF). Four-week-old (sexually immature) and four-month-old (sexually mature) female rats were treated with the non-selective estrogen receptor (ER) agonist diethylstilboestrol (DES), progesterone and their combination, or ovariectomized...

Fetal testis is a major target of endocrine disruptors (EDs). During the last 20 years, we have developed an organotypic culture system that maintains the function of the different fetal testis cell types and have used this approach as a toxicological test to evaluate the effects of various compounds on gametogenesis and steroidogenesis in rat, mouse and human testes. We named this test rat, mouse and human fetal testis assay. With this approach, we compared the effects of six potential EDs ((mono-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (MEHP), cadmium, depleted uranium, diethylstilboestrol (DES), bisphenol A (BPA) and metformin) and one signalling molecule (retinoic acid (RA)) on the function of rat, mouse and human fetal testis at a comparable developmental stage...

The aim of this review was to discuss the most recent data from current trials of diethylstilboestrol (DES) to identify its present role in advanced prostate cancer treatment as new hormonal therapies emerge. The most relevant clinical studies using DES in castration-refractory prostate cancer (CRPC) were identified from the literature. The safety, efficacy, outcomes and mechanisms of action are summarized. In the age of chemotherapy this review highlights the efficacy of oestrogen therapy in CRPC. The optimal point in the therapeutic pathway at which DES should be prescribed remains to be established...

In rodents, in utero exposure to exogenous estrogens including diethylstilboestrol (DES) results in major suppression of steroidogenesis in fetal testes. Whether similar effects occur in the human fetal testis is equivocal. Based on the results of the rodent studies, we hypothesised that exposure of human fetal testes to DES would result in a reduction in testosterone production. We show, using a xenograft approach, that testosterone production is not reduced in human fetal testis following DES exposure. Human fetal testes (15-19 weeks' gestation, n = 6) were xenografted into castrate male nude mice which were then treated for 35 days with vehicle or 100 µg/kg DES three times a week...

The aim of our study was to examine the involvement of renin-angiotensin system (RAS) in estrogen-induced lactotropes proliferation and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in rat pituitary. The study was performed on Fisher 344 rats underwent 8-day treatment with diethylstilboestrol (DES). The proliferation index (PCNA) and VEGF expression in pituitary sections were estimated using immunohistochemical methods. Treatment with DES increased the number of PCNA-positive cells, VEGF-positive cells, and VEGF-positive blood vessels in pituitary...

Diethylstilboestrol (DES) is an endocrine disrupter which causes cancer in rodents. It was prescribed in large amounts to treat women with gynaecological problems; some of the daughters of these women subsequently developed a rare cancer (vaginal clear cell adenocarcinoma) while genital abnormalities were found in some of the sons. It was used for decades in livestock feed and this may have contaminated the food chain leading to the exposure of the more general population. DES appears to cause epigenetic effects in animals and there is some evidence that this also occurs in man...

The design of improved polymeric carriers to be used in the next generation of polymer therapeutics is an ongoing challenge. Biodegradable systems present potential advantages regarding safety benefit apart from the possibility to use higher molecular weight (Mw) carriers allowing PK optimization, by exploiting the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR)-mediated tumor targeting. Within this context, we previously designed pH-responsive polyacetalic systems, tert-polymers, where a drug with the adequate diol-functionality was incorporated within the polymer mainchain...

A radioreceptor assay, suitable for detecting residues in the meat of any compound with oestrogenic activity, is described. The assay is based upon the use of a purified preparation of oestrogen receptors obtained by affinity chromatography from swine uteri. The method was validated by measuring the oestrogenic activities in plasma and meat of diethylstilboestrol or oestradiol treated calves. The standard curve was performed by using oestradiol. Plasma levels of oestrogenic activity, expressed as equivalent of oestradiol, rose above control values 2 days after both diethylstilboestrol and oestradiol treatments, then declined to basal values by day 6 after the treatments...

Past research has demonstrated that oestrogenic compounds produce strand breaks in the DNA of sperm and lymphocytes via reactive oxygen species (ROS). In the current investigation, sperm and lymphocytes were treated in vitro with oestrogenic compounds (diethylstilboestrol, progesterone, 17β-oestradiol, noradrenaline and triiodotyronine) and several aspects of DNA damage were investigated. Firstly, mediation of DNA damage by lipid peroxidation was investigated in the presence of BHA (a lipid peroxidation blocker)...

Concerned with the high incidence of breast and prostate cancers in industrialized countries, including France, we reviewed the literature and national reports on the potential carcinogenic effects of several endocrine disruptors (ED) present in the environment. We examine why it is extremely difficult to obtain clear proof of a carcinogenic effect of ED in humans. Yet the results of several independent studies strongly point to such a carcinogenic effect, particularly in the case of hormone-dependent cancers...

Reference genotoxic compounds 2-aminoanthracene, diethylstilboestrol and vinblastine were tested in the in vitro micronucleus assay using Chinese hamster V79 derived cells in the laboratories of British American Tobacco in the UK. The work was conducted in support of the cytotoxicity measures recommended in the 2007 version of the OECD Test Guideline 487. The three compounds were positive in the assay in the presence and absence of the cytokinesis blocking agent cytochalasin B at concentrations that did not exceed the recommended cytotoxic limits determined by relative population doubling, relative increase in cell counts, relative cell counts and cytokinesis block proliferation index...

This study investigated the effect on the uterus of the aqueous fraction of the partitioned methanol crude extract of the leaves of Anthocleista djalonensis (AD) and the possible mechanism of AD activity. AD inhibited the concentration-response curves induced by oxytocin and CaCl2 on the rat uterus in vitro and significantly reduced the EC50 in a concentration-dependent manner (p < 0.05). A similar effect was observed with salbutamol and verapamil on the concentration-response curves obtained for oxytocin and CaCl2...

Quercetin has been reported to be an efficient antioxidant which protects chicken spermatogonial cells from oxidative damage through increasing intracellular antioxidants and decreasing lipid peroxidation. Exposure to diethylstilboestrol (DES) could cause reproductive damage in males, which is associated with oxidative stress. This study was conducted to investigate the protective effects of quercetin on DES-induced oxidative damage in cultured hamster spermatogenic cells. The cells were treated with different concentrations of DES, and their growth status was observed under inverted microscope...

Much work has been done in vivo on the effects of sex steroids on the developing foetus. Many genital anomalies have been reported; defects of other organ systems have been suggested. Synthetic oestrogens are considered to be developmental toxicants in vivo, while natural oestrogens are thought to present little or no risk. A small selection of hormones (17beta-oestradiol, 17alpha-ethynyloestradiol, diethylstilboestrol and progesterone) was tested using the rat whole embryo culture technique to see whether this difference could also be confirmed in vitro...

Recently, primary cultures consisting mostly of fibroblasts and up to 8% epithelial cells have been derived from ram seminal vesicles (SEMV), which contain high levels of prostaglandin H synthase (PHS). PHS-peroxidase can catalyse the metabolic activation of several xenobiotics, for example diethylstilboestrol (DES). Thus SEMV cells can be a useful tool for investigating whether PHS has a role in mediating the adverse genotoxic effects of such substances, provided that a suitable endpoint for genotoxicity can be determined in this model system...

The synthetic oestrogen diethylstilboestrol (DES) causes a dose-dependent elevation of the cytoplasmic Ca(2+) concentration in C6 rat glioma cells. This Ca(2+) rise is caused neither by Ca(2+) influx nor by release from the Ca(2+) stores of the endoplasmic reticulum. Therefore it seems likely that DES mobilizes Ca(2+) from a mitochondrial source. The DES-induced Ca(2+) signal is remarkably similar to the one induced by the tumour promotor thapsigargin. As this compound causes leakage of calcium from the endoplasmic reticulum it seems possible that DES induces a similar leakage from mitochondrial Ca(2+) stores...